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One of the things I appreciate about Facebook is how easy it is to connect with many of my friends in message. I’ll often get the fastest response there.

And there are times that I love being able to have a few conversations going at the same time using the “Message” tool.

Usually a box opens on the lower right with a space to type in your message. In the case of the image below, I was already in a chat which you can see had a lot going on in it.

The simplest way to read a message, as well as what we are writing is to open up the window that shows the “full conversation.” The messaging then opens in a full column width. To do this:

1 – First click on the gear in the box header.

2 – A drop down menu opens
3 – Select “See Full Conversation” and you’ll see the message opens to the full width of the column.

That’s all there is to it. Enjoy your chats. Remember they are private, only visible to you and the person with whom you are messaging. And, for easy reference, they stay in that message stream as long as you wishEach of the above rectangular spaces holds a prior message chat with your friend. To protect the privacy of my friends I cropped the box so that you don’t see names or photos.

When you click on one of the names or spaces, the chat will open up in the lower right side of the page, where the message space usually opens. Then for easier reading you can open to the “Full Conversation”, again, following the instructions at the beginning of this post.

Please note in the “Leave a reply” section below: Was this post was helpful to you? Were you aware that you could open to full conversations?

Also, are there other questions you have about Facebook or any of your electronic devices? If so, again, please ask them in the comments section.

I just received a query from someone with a new Fan Page on Facebook. She was frustrated because she could not Share posts that were made to it by other people.

A quick investigation, which is play for me, came up with the answers.

First, to manage you page select your Page Identity from the Dropdown menu by clicking on the arrow in the upper right. Then choose the Settings you wish, including the one to allow posts to your page.

Now go back to your Page. Any posts made by others will be appear in the column on the left. Click on the arrow to open up a list of the posts with the option to Like, Comment or Share.

Listing of Posts on the PageDoes this answer questions you may have? Please leave comments in the “Leave a Reply” box below. Other questions? Ask them there in that space also.

In the process of interviewing iPad using Seniors for my upcoming Kindle book, I spoke to someone recently who barely had a clue on how to use his iPad. And, he was not the first one I’ve encountered in this situation. I’ve met and spoken to a few Seniors who received an iPad as a gift from a son, daughter or other relative and weren’t even sure why they received it. It is a great and generous gift and if they are left with an iPad that’s set up and they don’t know what to do with it, it becomes almost pointless.

After the interview, I decided to create this MUST DO TIP LIST to consider when presenting an iPad gift to a senior. You can download the list itself, without the images, at iPad Set-Up Tips. I also visited my YouTube channel and found that most of it is covered in a series of 8 very short, simple-to-follow videos. Fortunately I’d had the foresight to document what I did when I first opened my own iPad that I had gifted to myself!!

Must Cover Information to Make Certain The Gift Recipient Understands hisor her iPad.

1 – The Apple ID – Make sure you Save someplace and be sure they Save, and know where to find it, the Apple ID they create AND their password.This will be, as you undoubtedly know, necessary for them to get into the iTunes Store to download any Apps.

2 – Show them
a – How toPower the iPad Off and On
b – How to change orientation of the iPad… from vertical to horizontal… either locking it in position or leaving it unlocked.. My preference is to leave it unlocked so it will rotate when I turn the iPad. I usually keep it in horizontal mode.
c – Where the Settings icon is.

3 – Where the Home Button is and how double tapping it brings up the open Apps on the bottom

4 – Since more than likely one of the reasons they will most want it, or will grow to love it for, is using the Kindle App.
a – Show them how to set up an Amazon Account, if they don’t already have one.

5 – How to set up an email account AND how to have it be inactive so all their mail is not coming into the iPad unless they want it there. I keep some of my accounts inactive unless I’m traveling.

6 – How to use the Internet
a – Click on Safari icon
b – Tap in address space to do a search or enter a full domain name.com

7–Show the Share icon– for emailing, bookmarking, and/or adding what will be a frequently used siteonto the Home Page. They might particularly want to understand this feature in order to share photos. It is also great for saving web pages and emailing it to a friend or associate. one

8 – How to close open Apps by double-clicking the Home button and swiping the Apps up, from the center of the app window, not the icon.

Open Apps drain the battery if they are running in the background. Also setting the iPad to “Never” lock drains the battery. See Video 8 in the series. You can go to the videos individually or click on the video image and the whole Playlist will start and continue on the each of the videos, without your having to click on each one. And, you can always pause as you are watching.

Click or Tap on Links Below
to get to theINDIVIDUAL VIDEOS
in theiPad TUTORIALS SERIES

With today’s being Mother’s Day and it’s also being the time of year for graduations, I once again remind you of the power of our various built-in cameras to be and stay connected with our loved ones – family members and friends.

Throughout this Technology for Seniors Made Easy blog, I reference using iPhone or other Smart Phone video cameras to make these connections. I make it a practice to sing Happy Birthday, or other greetings, on video to my family members and close friends. Any videos under a minute in length are easy to email or text directly from the iPhone.

For this post I did the quick video above to demonstrate acknowledging Mother’s Day. Early in the day, I “text” messaged my granddaughter with a note along with a singing congratulations video on her graduation from college. Both were done with my iPhone, the camera lens tapped to face me.

Elsewhere on the blog I show How to Use Photo Booth on the iMac for creating videos and emailing them. The lower video on that page has my singing “Happy Birthday” to subscribers. There I also point out the importance of maintaining eye contact with the recipient.

Our inclination is usually to be looking at ourselves and our own eyes in the monitor when we do videos. Rather, it’s important to remember, when addressing your audience through the camera, be sure to look at and focus on the lens of the device… on the side of our phones and tablets and top center of our computers.

Referencing the video above, in terms of the mechanics of it….

Usually I’ll simply hold the phone in my hand and simply stretch my arm as far out as I can go. In the case of this video I used my Joby GripTight GorillaPod Stand™ sitting on a box to bring it up closer to eye level.

NOTE: If you do not have a video camera, or are uncomfortable videoing yourself, the are several ways you can send audio messages. See Audio Recording Loved One’s Voices. Although the focus is on preserving another’s voice, the alternative processes described would be the same for sending audio messages.

Joyous connecting, making a difference for those you are reaching, as well as yourself. Please share your experiences with audio and/or video greetings in the “Leave a Reply….” box below.

With the Easter holiday almost here and Passover continuing through Tuesday night, I’m reminded of one of the reasons I am so passionate about seniors being comfortable with using basic technology on their cameras, tablets or computers. It is so easy today to connect family and friends who are in many different locations, sometimes throughout the world.

My personal preference is to use Zoom.us, an easy, one-time download, to connect with one another by computer, iPhone, iPad or other Android phone or tablet for seeing one another, sharing celebrations. If no electronic devices are available, you can even use a mobile or land line phone to call in.

One of the things that makes this program extra special from my perspective is that you can record your conversations, gatherings, events… whatever is shared and you’ll be preserving the memories for whomever/whenever in both video and audio!

On this past Christmas day, my cousins gathered from nine different locations, including at an airport, as well as by phone from India. We were together for over an hour.

In the above image on the left, I was setting up a computer in my son’s office to record our gathering for those people who could not attend. On the right, four of us were gathered around my iPad on his family patio.

The next image on the left is a gallery view of several of us, from Florida, California, Rhode Island and a few from the Philadelphia home where most of my cousins and their families were gathered. On the right you’ll see a portion of the note I was writing and sharing from my iPad.

Internet and screens can be shared one at a time from any of your devices. So if one wants to show family photos, or anything else, this can be shared with the full group. So you can get an even greater sense of the intimacy of the experience, above is the one minute video I did of candle lighting on the last night of Hanukkah. My son and grandson who live a half-hour from me in Florida had called to request our lighting candles together while on the phone. Instead I suggested we include my son, their brother and uncle, in Georgia. Given his webcam wasn’t set up, you’ll see an icon only when he was talking. Even though he did not have an operational webcam he could see us on his computer.

As many as 50 participant devices for up to 40 minutes are free when using Zoom.us. The host can also pay $14.99 a month for unlimited time. If you are using the free service, you will be notified when the 40-minute end time is approaching. You do have the option to come back in again for another 40 minutes, if you so choose. If you elect to pay for a month’s service, you can cancel at any time.

Again, both video and audio recording are optional at no charge. The facilitator can record it AND he/she can give the participants permission to record also. When the gathering is over the recordings download to the computers of each person who clicked on “Record.”

You can access the Zoom program by using the DOWNLOAD link at the bottom of any of the http://Zoom.us pages. If you have an iPad or iPhone, it will direct you to the App store for Zoom.us download. You can see a complete tutorial for setting up and/or attending a Zoom gathering on my Zoom Tutorial page.

I also have series of Zoom videos on the YouTube Technology for Seniors Zoom Playlist.

If you have any questions, please leave them in the “Leave a Reply” section below or address them to me easyseniortechnology@gmail.com. I will be checking regularly, should you need help this weekend.

Do you ever wish, when your using your iPad or iPhone, that you could quickly get to your most frequently used websites and pages?

Recently I was asked, “How can I get an icon on my iPad desktop?” I had never thought about it. Always curious, I immediately went on an investigative tour of my iPad and then my iPhone. I found the answer was “Yes” AND it was soooo easy.

The “share” or “send-to” icon (see #1 in the image above) is the way to easily send photos, notes and links to web pages gives far more choices than I had paid attention to. I’d only been using it for mailing or messaging photos and web page links to myself and friends.

As I looked more closely on my discovery journey, I notice the “Add to Home Screen” choice (#2 in image above) in the bottom row. And, so I did. To my amazement, it was instantly on my home screen!

When you’re on a web page, you’ll find the “share” icon (rectangle with vertical arrow pointing up) at the top of the page. For Photos and
Notes (if you use this application) the icon is in the bottom left corner of the page.

ADDED NOTE: When it comes to the share choices in the top row, I personally prefer not to use send to Twitter or Facebook from applications where they ask if they can access our files and contacts. I do all my posting on those sites directly from my computer, iPhone or iPad.

Please share in the “Leave a reply” box below, any shortcuts and apps that you especially like using on your iPhone, iPad or any other phone, tablet or computer.

One of the main things I am committed to in my Technology for Seniors Made Easy business is that people be able to easily use technology so that they can connect with one another, including actually seeing people important to them.

I have written here onTechnologyforSeniorsMadeEasy.com blog, in the past about using the phone and video to preserve memories. I was really moved the other day to received the following message for a friend, with this video attached. I have regularly been using my iPhone and sometimes Photo Booth in my Mac to send birthday and anniversary greetings to friends and family members. And my friend went all out in this video to her mother on the latter’s 91st birthday.

The above video was done with Photo Booth. The same friend wrote the following to me, along with a different video:

“ONLY because of YOU YOU YOU YOU… did I make my mother some videos and she LOVES getting them. I sent a special one for her 91st birthday!!

I LOVE sending Video cards now!! And people LOVE getting them even More than a regular card they tell me!! THANKS AGAIN for your endless Patience with me until I was ready!!”

And, last night, another friend to whom I sang Happy Birthday in an iPhone message wrote:

“That was a beautiful video, you’ve got such a great voice. [I was always told I couldn’t carry a tune!] I am so moved that you sang to me, just like all my sisters and family!

I loved it! It was the cherry on the cake of my day!”

This is only the tip of the iceberg. What if you were to regularly be recording these special moments, including holiday celebrations?

For sure, you wouldn’t be left like I was/am ruing the fact that with all my knowledge and ability to do it, I do not have anything with my late husband’s voice… something I so miss not having.

At least now I know enough and have the simple tools to preserve family memories.

As seen and heard in the above video recording, my two sons and one of my grandsons, were able to share the last night of our holiday together, from three different locations. Note, one son did not have a digicam, so you’ll see an icon when he speaks.

We got on a Zoom.us meeting and I simply pushed a button to record it.

On February 24th, in my weekly Monday, Evolving Seniors FREE Hour Q and A calls, I will be showing ways you can do the above, preserve and send these celebrations and memories. Get details on the EVOLVING SENIORS page.

If you’ve missed this session, register anyway to get details of future sessions. Then email me a request for the recording of the 2/24/14 meeting.

Reply to me from the welcome email with the request, or email me at easyseniortechnology@gmail.com with that request or with any other questions you’d like to see addressed here on this blog or in that weekly gathering.

Keeping up with family and friends AND MAKING new friends, is one of the major reasons I love the Internet and being able to use it and all the devices available to us. This video, using Zoom.us, is an example of what’s possible.

Several years ago, through groups found online and connected via email and phone only, I made quite a few friends with whom I still interact today. I especially love the Zoom.us app because it allows more direct contact and visual sharing of our own persona and photos and information from our computers, iphones, android, iPads, other tablets and even a phone only.

Periodically I offer free Q&A Mondays, from 11 AM to Noon US Eastern time, on all the ways you can use Zoom to enrich your personal life and business life. One of the things I did in preparation for this is a video showing the various Zoom controls to Morgine Jurdan. Morgine is one of my friends whom I met online about 8 years ago. She lives across the country from me. We thus find Zoom a fun and easy way to connect.

Almost daily, I hear about another creative, and sometimes necessary, use of technology. Just the other day my friend Terry shared an exciting experience she had at a restaurant in an airport. There was a weather delay, so it added to her pleasure to land up in a restaurant

where every table had an iPad!!!

Not only were the iPads there for the patrons general use, they served as the “waiters,” offering the menu, taking food and beverage selections. The final step to placing orders is swiping your credit car on the machine attached to the table.

While waiting for her food to be brought to her, Terry was able to surf the internet or play games!

Would you have been as excited as Terry if you had sat down in this restaurant?

Do you ever wonder, like I often do, “Where did the time go?”…. “How much time did I spend on…. ?”

I recently was introduced to Toggl, can be used for simple tracking of tasks for yourself:

“What are you Working on Now”, and then timing it with the built-in timer or adding, or adjusting, the start and end times manually, if I forgot to start or stop the time. It’s very easy to go in and make changes to the times.

You can be listing multiple projects and then run reports. If in
business you can also be tracking “billable hours” as well as more
in-depth tracking.

And, while I’m writing about tracking….

Several people recently have talked/written about how much more
they are accomplishing by using a timer, allotting specified amounts
of time for particular projects or activities.

There are the “traditional” timers you’ve most likely used in the
past… the “kitchen timer”… a dial one that you set to number of minutes you want to count down from.

Then, in later years and
currently, a timer you can set with your microwave or oven (even if
not cooking).

Given I generally address “computer/internet” tech tips here, I’ll add my past and current favorites for setting time notifications. Prior to my iPhone, I used “Class Timer” for timed writing prompts and other activities in my office when near my computer. I just discovered a link on that page to a variety of other timers, including a “Chess Timer” – See http://www.timeme.com/

My most favorite now is the timer on the iPhone. You can select, and change at any time, the ringtones you’d like to hear at the end. Fun!

Then, whenever I need to be using an alarm clock, it’s my iPhone I choose! Prior to my iPhone it was my cell phone that I mainly used. One of the most frustrating things for me when I first got my iPhone was not being able to find the alarm feature!

No longer do I use a radio clock, or any other standard clock …. I simply set my trusty phone, usually placing it on my dresser across the room, ensuring I’ll easily get out of bed.

Not to be left out, as I mentioned above, even if you are not an iPhone user, as you most likely know, the “alarm clock” is an integral part of any basic cell phone. It doesn’t have to be a “smart phone.”

Lastly, while I’m talking iPhone clocks, let’s not forget the World Clock.

How often I’ve been tempted to the Web to check the time out for a cousin who lives in India, or search for where I noted down the time difference somewhere in my computer.

Same thing with a friend in England. Then I REMEMBER. “Oh, yes. I do not have to go any further than the built-in Clock app on the iPhone and iPad!”